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Special Olympics Event a Huge Success

May 21, 2013

YORK, Pa. – The York College athletic department, in
conjunction with the Spartan S.A.A.C. (Student-Athlete Advisory
Committee) program hosted the Special Olympics for the first time
on Saturday, May 11. Hundreds of athletes from York Country
competed in track & field, swimming and tennis events. Thanks
to the amazing efforts of the Spartan student-athletes and
employees, the event was one of the most successful and exciting
events the Special Olympics organization has seen.

“It was an amazing day,” said S.A.A.C. advisor and
head men’s lacrosse coach Brandon Childs.
“There were so many athletes giving their best, just having a
lot of fun.”

Coach Childs said it was such a gift to see the interaction
between the Special Olympic athletes and the Spartan athletes.

The amazing experience could be felt by all of those who were a
part of the day.

“I got to see sides of our athletes that we never usually
get see,” said Grumbacher Sport and Fitness Center
event/building manager Rachel Findley. “Normally we see their
games faces when they compete, but today it was all about making
the day special for all the other athletes.”

On the track, athletes participated in sprinting events, turbo
javelin, broad jump, long jump and shot put. Inside the York
College Natatorium, the athletes competed in the pool against each
other. After the swimming events were done, a relay team made up of
the college athletes competed against the Special Olympics relay
team.

“It is truly inspiring to watch these athletes,”
said women’s swimmer Kelsie Pike(Newark, Del./St. Mark’s). “Seeing
their smiles when they touched the wall made all the hard work that
was put into creating and organizing this event worth
it.”

Pike was one of the swimmers included in the relay
race.

“When we lost, they turned around right away to tell us
that we are all winners,” said Pike. “They are true
role models for anyone participating in athletics.”

Athletes also competed over on the other side of campus on the
Spartan tennis courts. Coach Childs said that after all the planned
events were done, the tennis team organized some mixed doubles
games. Spartan tennis players paired up with the Special Olympics
athletes to compete against each other to add even more excitement
to the day.

“My team LOVED playing tennis with the athletes,”
said women’s tennis player Megan McCullin(New Windsor, Md./Westminster Senior). “It
was extremely rewarding to be able to give back to such amazing
people.”

Both Coach Childs and Finley could not reiterate enough how much
extra effort the York College athletes and volunteers put into the
event to make it an unforgettable day.

It was unanimous by the end of the day that this was the best
community service that any of the athletes had participated in at
York College.

“It was just awesome day,” said men’s soccer
player Justin Kaiser(Bradenburg,
KY/Menchville). “Getting to not only support, but
play with all of the athletes.”

The outcome was greater then could have ever been expected and
it was a truly special day for all that were involved.

“It is a must for every year,” said Coach
Childs.

Athletic Department
York College of Pennsylvania
441 Country Club Road
York, PA 17403-3651
(717) 815-1780